Two men on trial for a ghastly crime: The alleged first-degree murder of a handsome young Winnipeg man, a cocaine dealer, who went missing for months and was found July 23, 2008 in a barrel pulled from the Lee River.

Corey Tymchyshyn and Kristopher Brincheski are accused and presumed innocent.

After week one of the hearing, here’s a breakdown of the evidence Crown prosecutors have presented thus far in this deadly serious case, which they say occurred Feb. 6, 2008. Davis’s disappearance after this date was a missing persons investigation until his body was discovered.

[You can read Crown attorney Keith Eyrikson’s opening address to the jury here to get the crux of the allegations. This lenghty post is more to ground readers on the actual evidence that’s being presented].
Also, I’ve presented it (with one exception) without distinction of whether the evidence was led on direct by the Crown or cross examination by defence lawyers.

I suspect to the 11-person jury, it’s important they just hear it all and then try to sort out what’s what. It’s the answers, not the questions, that are the evidence.

And remember: the golden guideline is, they can accept all, some or none of what a witness tells them.

Richard Marcotte

Lives in Winnipeg, owns cottage on the Lee River since 1989 that he built himself. Goes almost every weekend in the summer, not as often in wintertime.

Has never seen the Winnipeg River completely frozen, “not really.”

The current of the water on the Lee River at his cottage flows north to south, is “fairly strong” in the centre. “Not much” from east to west.

A public walkway to a dock next to his cottage is meant for cottagers in the area, “backlotters,” who don’t have waterfront property.

On July 5, 2008, saw barrel in water. Thought it may be debris from a dock that had broken up elsewhere. On this day, he rolled it onto the shore as far as he could. It was black and had holes near the plastic lid, which was sealed with a steel snap ring.

He left the item there until July 23 when he and another cottager moved to move and dispose of it. He unsnapped it and saw a white/black tarp inside. The friend pulled on it until he saw a “belt and pants” inside. The friend had a better look and told him to get out.

They did and called police, who arrived in 5 minutes. He did not take anything out of the barrel.

Says he didn’t open it at first because he was alone, that’s why he left it for two weeks.

Admits anyone could have come and gone up and down the public walkway to use the public dock, which isn’t supervised.

Shown picture of current winter conditions in the area, can’t disagree the water appears frozen over.

RCMP Cpl. Maria Forester, forensic analyst [first appearance]

July 23, 2008: learned at 1:30 pm she was being dispatched to Lee River scene. Arrived there at 4:23 p.m.

Serious Crime Unit and RCMP divers there already.

Barrel is now turned upright, wrapped in a shroud and then fished out with a winch.

She’s shown other items – a cardboard box with Davis’s family’s business logo on it and her handwriting, a floor lamp and a nylon DVD case – IDs them as his.

Says the lamp was in the storage unit at Dino’s. Her pillow, pink, was also shown to her.

She spoke to RCMP on three occasions in the homicide probe.

She’s positive the heating pad she’s shown was in the Jeep at the time she last saw Chad.

Sych describes watches Davis wore – one of them slightly broken, missing a strap pin – and posters he had, including a “Scarface” poster.

Davis’s key to get into the lock on the storage unit door at Dino’s was kept in his Jeep’s cupholder.

He owned two TV sets, one a “flatscreen” the other heavy and “old school.”

She was at Davis’s funeral. Tymchyshyn was not.

The message she left on Tymchyshyn’s mother’s line on Feb. 6, 2008 was not returned.

DAY 3 – Sych returns, cross-examination

Had been to Tymchyshyn’s mother’s home on Prince Rupert “a while previous.”

Agrees the distance between Red Lion Inn and Tymchyshyn’s mom’s is “polar opposite” ends of city.

Davis’s half-hour estimate of being away was a casual statement, not a definitive timeline.

He could have gotten texts or other calls when they were eating at the Chinese restaurant.

She can’t recall Davis getting other calls other than the one from Tymchyshyn.

She remembers seeing the phone lying on the bed, seeing it was Tymchyshyn’s number.

“I have no idea” if Davis got call from another friend, SW, when they were eating.

SW was a “nice boy” whom Chad would smoke up with sometimes.

SW was one of the only people who seemed concerned after Davis went missing.

His other friends: “I always told him they weren’t his real friends – more like business associates.”

Another of Davis’s friends said: “go f’ yourself, and you and Chad go f’ yourself.”

Another, CC, suggested she had something to do with his disappearance on first conversation, on second, he was more helpful. Told her to “wait it out,” because “Chad’s a little on the weird side sometimes.”

She couldn’t say if these men worked for Chad in his drug business or were friends. “I fully 100 per cent do not know.”

Admits he had vanished without telling her once before, in 2007 when he upped and left for Toronto. This upset her.

He had also not called her when he was arrested for a drug matter and stopped answering her phone.

Admits after Davis went missing on Feb. 6, she found the money in the bag and went for a friend to have a drink.

Talk of going to Calgary was not spontaneous or out of the blue, it had been discussed before.

She says she doesn’t remember telling Davis’s mother in Feb. 14, 2008 call that he was taking her out to Calgary and then coming back.

Admits there was a no-contact order between them at the time. “I was looking to get the charges dropped … the no-contact order.”

There’s a note in the day planner for Feb. 5 to call Legal Aid and a phone number, but can’t recall if that call was made that day. “There was a few phone calls.”

She and Davis planned to leave without dealing with his outstanding warrants ASAP. The assumption was he’d come back and deal with them.

How drunk did she get on Feb 6 with her friend? “I’ve never been incredibly drunk that I didn’t know what was going on. I was not stumbling … slurring my words – I have never been that way.” But is a lightweight when comes to drinking. (Statement) Told police on Aug. 7, 2008 that she and friend ended up getting “right retarded” after going for the drink on Feb. 6, 2008.

“I was never a disaster drunk.” – can only tolerate so much, saying she hadn’t eaten all day.

Over next few weeks: “I really drank myself stupid every day.” “Because I really didn’t know what was going on.”

Yes, it was Davis who paid her way back to Winnipeg from B.C.

The list of names and numbers in the day planner was, to her, a score sheet. “That’s what I get out of it. That they owed him money for drugs.”

Yes, Davis had a temper and would sometimes take it out on her. But he had “softened up … with me.”

Has taken hundreds of statements from people over his 14+ years as a cop

Feb. 12, 2008 – was assigned with other OCU’s to look into General Patrol report made by Sych that Davis was missing. OCU involved because of Davis’s connection to drug trade.

Spoke with Tymchyshyn’s mom on Feb. 15, 2008, at home on Prince Rupert, last place Davis had been heard from or seen.

Spoke with her in kitchen for 20-25 minutes: “I found she was incredibly nervous and incredibly anxious.”

That led to Feb. 19, 2008 conversation with Tymchyshyn at Prince Rupert after playing “phone tag” with him for a couple of days.

He asked to speak with Tymchyshyn in cruiser car for privacy. He was not under arrest, could have left.

The tone was “fairly genial, fairly light.”

“There was no other information at that time to suggest anything else had happened” (it was missing persons case).

Tymchyshyn said he met Davis via mutual friends in summer 2007, were former roommates on Hargrave.

That he and his girlfriend had a rocky relationship.

Took Tymchyshyn’s phone number and DOB.

What Tymchyshyn told him: (according to Freeman’s notes and recall, in italics) he last saw Davis on Feb. 6-7 in early afternoon at Tymchyshyn’s mom’s home. He came over there.

They were supposed to go to a hydroponics store in Davis’s Jeep.

Said Davis visited with him and mom for 30-60 mins, “was in good spirits.”

Had seen him using his BB and texting.

A white-coloured cab came, he couldn’t say what company.

The driver was an East Indian male who was clean shaven and had black hair.

Davis appeared to be familiar with him because they shook hands.

Davis took a black suitcase and a blue Rubbermaid container out of his Jeep and put them in cab.

Was not aware where he was going.

Davis said he “was going out of town for a few days, that (Tymchyshyn) needs to come to pick him up when he returns.”

His other friend, RMG, was to come get the Jeep from Tymchyshyn, that the keys were left with Tymchyshyn for that purpose.

Tymchyshyn admitted he owed Davis money for cocaine, $18,000.

“He made it clear to us it was for personal cocaine use.”

The debt had accumulated over 30-45 days,

He had repaid that amount to Davis through income at his legitimate job;

And also by lending Davis the use of his Chevy Avalanche “for a period of time.”

The Avalanche had been returned to him by RMG on Feb. 12 or 13. “The debt had been paid, and now it was OK to have the truck returned.”

Some East Indian males had been using the Avalanche.

Tymchyshyn said “he was concerned about Chad and had no idea where he’d gone.”

Birth certificate of a man named Siran was found in the Avalanche when he got it back, Tymchyshyn had said.

Freeman: Kris Brincheski’s name never once came up in missing person’s investigation.

Freeman says he never got a call from a man named Michael Goulet or from Dino’s storage.

Admits he had no “baseline” to judge Tymchyshyn’s mom’s behaviours and mannerisms.

Tymchyshyn never said he sold cocaine.

“I was actually kind of surprised he (Tymchyshyn) acknowledged the debt in the first place.”

ADMISSION OF AGREED FACTS

Police were tasked with finding out of taxis (white ones) dispatched to 703 Prince Rupert after 12 noon on Feb. 6, 2008

There’s no record of any cab being dispatched.

Spring Taxi could not provide records because they no longer existed. The company does have white cabs in its fleet.

DAY 4:

Day begins with two questions from jurors, who want to know how much cocaine $18,000 could buy and at what designation [wholesale or retail]. They also want to know if there was a delay in asking Spring Taxi for their dispatch records. Justice Brenda Keyser acknowledges the questions on the record and asks them to be patient and hear all the evidence before deciding to seek answers.

Next witness, Lori Davis

Is Chad Davis’s mother.

Calls Davis, “my baby boy,”

Says he was a “physical fit buff” and thought he was a good-looking guy.

Davis struggled in school, “he had to learn everything the hard way … like a wild stallion sometimes.”

“I talked to him all the time. He called me daily, generally … it was the norm for us to talk to Chad every single day.”

Even if he left town, he’d still phone, even if the details he gave were sketchy

“It would be abnormal, absolutely” to no hear from him every day.

He liked to look good, liked “bling” like jewelry and watches.

He was “meticulous” about caring for his car, “it was his prized possession.”

“He told us he would trust no one with his car except for his dad.”

Davis had two big screen TVs.

“Chad would always make it clear to us he didn’t trust his friends … he didn’t lend anything out. He didn’t trust anybody.”

She did not know him to take taxi cabs, that if he ever needed a ride, he’d call his dad.

Phone was attached to dad’s hip: “the Chad phone.”

“The bottom line is we loved our little boy, we wanted to keep him safe. For 22 years all we wanted to do was keep him safe and we couldn’t.”

Davis “didn’t like rules … was extremely defiant.”

She became aware when he was 19 that he was selling drugs. She says she sort of “stalked him” to keep tabs on what he was up to.

She and Davis had talked about him getting out of town to get a fresh start.

As of fall 2007, he had been living in suite on Taylor, alone.

He asked for help moving out of there because he wound up in jail for a short time.

She and husband “put his stuff into storage.” – Dino’s Storage.

For the couple of months before he went missing, had been living with Tymchyshyn.

She didn’t know he moved again after living with Tymchyshyn.

Some of his things – like a black sectional – wound up in her home because Davis was afraid it would get wrecked in storage.

She was asked questions and she answered each in a forthright, plainspoken and clear way — largely without emotion.

She’d smile once in a while when the lawyers didn’t get something she previously said exactly right.

I’ve spent a number of hours now sitting in Laporte’s hearing.

Not all of his trial, but a good chunk of it.

I’ll glance over at him from time to time to watch how closely he’s paying attention, making extensive notes on yellow paper and consulting frequently with his defence lawyer, Crystal Antilla.

I’ve followed Laporte’s extensive legal saga at a court-ordered distance since Nov. 25-26, 2008, when I exclusively uncovered his case for the Winnipeg Free Press.

That’s 3.5 years now it’s taken to come to a bona fide public hearing, if anyone’s counting.

Laporte’s pleaded not guilty to a list of serious charges, including ones relating to the alleged aggravated sexual assault of an eight-year-old boy.

And from what I’ve heard so far, not one witness called by the Crown could place him at the scene of any of the crimes.

To the alleged victims, the attacks were random, committed by a total stranger to them.

So far, by my reading, it has all the hallmarks of a classic ‘identity case’ — where it’s unclear in fact or law if the right suspect is the one police charged with the crime.

That all appeared to change Thursday afternoon, when Laporte’s mom testified that it’s her son on surveillance footage from the two apartment blocks where the crimes took place.

While that fact alone doesn’t mean anything in and of itself, it does place Laporte at the scene, thus creating tough hurdles for his defence to overcome.

I mean, when you have your own mother say (essentially), ‘Hey, that’s my boy there’ on video guiding a kid into an apartment stairwell just moments before a serious sexual assault takes place, that can only definitively be called one thing at this point: problematic.

Nevertheless, Ms. Laporte’s testimony may all come to naught.

Antilla will argue strenuously to have the mom’s testimony struck from the record based on an as-yet unrevealed legal argument.

But what really struck me about Lucille Laporte’s evidence is how it was obtained by police.

Laporte has been in continuous remand custody since Nov. 23, 2008, the day the allegations arose.

But it wasn’t until summer 2010 that sex-crimes investigators asked two colleagues completely unconnected to the case to bring Laporte’s mom in at the behest of the Crown to watch a few edited clips of surveillance footage from two apartment blocks in hopes of cementing the accused’s identity.

The mom wasn’t told any reason why she was being asked to look at the footage.

She was only asked if she’d come in and watch it to see if she recognized anyone.

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Ivan Radocaj, left, in a dated picture. (The Great Canadian Talk Show Podcast)

When Rita Cushnie showed up at the RCMP detachment nearly four years ago and was interviewed in regards to the killing of John Radocaj, she had exactly $1.87 in her purse.

Over the four-year life of the criminal case, she reported to RCMP for bail management exactly 187 times, her lawyer, Mike Cook told Justice Colleen Suche last night.

It was a coincidence revealed just before Suche handed the 57-year-old a life sentence without parole for 25 years after a jury convicted her of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

One-Eight-Seven: The cold irony for Cushnie, I guess, exists in how those digits have also been co-opted by the gangster underworld as a kind of shorthand for the crime of murder.

The slang use stems from the California Penal Code, where capital murder with malice falls under section 187 (a).

Winnipeg has already woken up to the news that Cushnie, her (former?) friend Melody Sanford and her son, Donald Richard were found guilty of the brutal murder of the man once known as “The Croatian Giant” in the wrestler’s ring.

I’m told it’s been a number of years since Radocaj — a large man standing 6’ 8” — ever stepped into the fray. Since the late ‘80’s.

As it is with the media, the ‘ former pro wrestler’ angle became a kind of thin trope to familiarize the public with the case and try to keep their interest (mea culpa).

But at the end of the day, ‘Big John’s’ murder had nothing to do with the faded glare of the spotlight or past athletic acclaim.

Instead, what I can surmise is that Radocaj was just a man who was duped into possibly believing he could have a second chance at love with a woman he had known for years who clearly now hated him for some still-unknown reason.

That’s the story of this trial that largely went untold.

As always, the “why” is elusive when it comes to crime and trials. For prosecutors, the “why” is seldom a question worth delving into, because that’s not really the job. The “who,” “when” and “how” are all that’s needed to secure a conviction, it seems.

It’s probably safe to say Radocaj’s belief in redemption cost him his life in the most brutal way.

A life lost for the promise of a few (and I do mean but a few) bucks and a TV set.

His estranged wife, Sanford and Richard (The orchestrator and executioner) each had the insight to recognize early on that they were culpable in the man’s death.

Their lawyers even admitted as much in closing arguments where they each said in open court manslaughter convictions were probably a foregone conclusion.

In Cushnie’s case, however, she had the most to lose, and obviously felt she was sucked into to something that spun out of any sort of control she may have had over things.

Cushnie appeared to break down prior to the jury entering the courtroom. Once the verdict was delivered and the jury had left the room, her tears turned to rage.

“Look what you did to me you little bastard,” Cushnie said while looking at her son as sheriff’s officers moved to handcuff her. “You’re dead to me.”

As the public were escorted out of the gallery and Cushnie was taken into custody for the first time since her arrest, her anxiety spilled over.

“No!” the elderly and frail-looking woman exclaimed, apparently in sheer fright as the female Sheriff approached with the handcuffs.

“Stop it,” the Sheriff barked back at her.

To her credit, Cushnie was the only one of the trio who addressed Radocaj’s grieving mother directly prior to being sentenced:

“I didn’t encourage him,” she said, an obvious reference to her son.

“I feel for you as a mother.”

If her conviction is ultimately upheld (I’d expect a swift appeal) she won’t be eligible for parole until age 82.

—

Other notes:

At least two jurors — one in particular — were visibly distraught as their decision was read by the foreman last night. By my count, all but two stayed for the sentencing portion and reading of the victim impact statements.

From behind the jury room door upon their exit, loud sobbing could be heard.

Justice Suche declined a request from the defence to poll the individual jurors as to the unanimity of their decision.

It’s in her discretion to do so, and she stated she had no reason to question the verdict.

The decision sparked a short exchange between her and John McAmmond (Richard’s lawyer), who seemed adamant to put the discomfort of the two jurors on the record.

—

Just moments before the jury portion of the trial got underway roughly two weeks ago, the defence rose to raise a point.

Radocaj’s mother had come to court wearing a photo of her son and either a shirt or a sign stating “Justice for Ivan.”

Suche ordered her to cover it up prior to the jury seeing it, deeming it prejudicial.

—

I point readers of this blog to this curious story I wrote regarding the case dating back to May 2009.

Even at that time, Sanford was ready to accept responsibility for the conspiracy, possibly explaining the resigned expression she wore during much of the trial that I was able to witness.

From what ever could tell, no abuse of process argument went forward from her lawyers, or it was done in the background.

But we’ll never know what piece of evidence came in that changed the Crown’s position to charge her with the actual killing more than a year after the conspiracy charge was laid.

—

There are two other accused in the case that have yet to deal with their charges.